the krumple

the Krumple seek to create visually arresting theatre without borders, characterized by a strong element of surprise. The human is at the forefront of everything we do, each show walking a fine line between sensitivity and stupidity, as we strive to look through both ends of the telescope for what usually cannot be seen. All shows are devised collaboratively, and without anyone taking themselves (too) seriously. We often seek to laugh and to make others laugh, and to tell stories in a non linear fashion, with a leaning towards the poetic and the surreal.

Here is the Krumple’s manifesto

To get more info : thekrumple.com

Selected works :

C H I M E R A (Chimère)

“Things have a life of their own. It’s simply a matter of waking up their souls.” — Gabriel Garcia Marquez, A Hundred Years of Solitude

With Chimera, the Krumple aims to create a performative journey, or odyssey, to encounter the “other”: encompassing all of that which we have placed outside of humanity through the label nature. For this project we seek to form contemporary chimeras by merging with other beings and matter, as an attempt to recreate resonance with our surroundings. In a multidisciplinary blend of physical and visual theatre, “new magic” and live music, we wish to challenge our perception of the human’s role as the planet’s protagonist and suggest an alternative coexistence."

With and by the Krumple: David Tholander, Léna Rondé, Oda Kirkebø Nyfløtt, Vincent Vernerie and Vanessa Mecke. Musician: Alice Picaud. Outside eye: Jo Even Bjørke and Yngvild Aspeli. Lighting design: Claire Gondrexon. Sound design: CS Sørensen. Set design: Kjersti Alm Eriksen. Costumes: the Krumple. Dramaturgical assistance: Yngvild Aspeli. Set construction: Tim Lucassen and Jan Erik Skarby.

M E G A M E G A

Have you experienced it? The moment when everything you held on to turned to powder and dust, or confetti and fireworks. During a night or a bottle of wine, or just a split second - when your whole life suddenly turns upside down. We all visit that moment again and again.

MEGAMEGA is about people who are in the middle of a crossroad, where the world suddenly opens up, closes or collapses in front of them.

There is always a before and an after. In MEGAMEGA, the Krumple collectively explores these specific moments of total change and confusion with the only tools that we believe can help - imagination and enchantment. In a board game of human scale, full of surprises and magic.

Co-produced by Teater Innlandet.

Concept and co-direction: Vincent Vernerie. Co-creators and performers: David Tholander, Léna Rondé, Oda Kirkebø Nyfløtt, Maja Bekken and Vincent Vernerie. Outside Eye: Jo Even Bjørke. Costume design and scenography: the Krumple. Composer: Marte Røyeng. Lighting design: Markus Tarasenko Fadum. Magic Consultant: Kevin Lunde. Choreographic Assistance: Catherine Béziex. Sound technician: Michael Dahlen. Stage manager: Sigrun Breck Oustad. Stagehand: Eugenio B Morales. Set painter: Barbro Bekken.

Producers (NO): Kari Dæhlin / the Krumple. Producers (FR): CM Culture / Collectif Krumple. Set, props and costumes produced by: Teater Innlandet.

Supported by: Arts Council Norway, Fund for Sound and Image, SPEDIDAM.

S O L A / calm the monkey mind

“ The Human is a cretaure of the present, who ondulates with calm in the Unknown like… fish”.

With these words, a strange clown-spirit introduces us to a world that is “beyond what our senses can perceive ''. With a range of silly movements and curious demonstrations he will tell us the story of Sébatian, a young man who is soon to become a father but who is feeling far from ready. Together they embark on a journey into the human’s mind to find out where the worries are coming from. Can a poetic way of seeing the events of a life change their narrative ?

SOLA is a playful, offbeat and diverse solo performance from the Krumple, which finds its inspiration at the crossroads between philosophical inquiries, ancient spiritual traditions and slapstick comedy. The performance is a co-production with Teater Vestland, Fossekleiva Kultursenter and PreForm, supported by Kulturrådet and Dramatikkens Hus, and had its premiere at Teaterfestivalen i Fjaler on September 9th 2021.

Written, performed and co-directed by: Vincent Vernerie. Co-directed by: Jo Even Bjørke. Dramaturg and producer: Oda Kirkebø Nyfløtt. Development and scenography: Frode Gjerløw. Lighting design: Agathe Patonnier. Sound design: Cédric Colin. Light-technician: Yasin Gyltepe. Sound technician: Paulucci Bakke. Costume-assistance: Madeleine F. Røseth and Madeleine Barosen Herholdt

D É J À

DÉJÀ is inspired by the award-winning graphic novel “Here” by Richard McGuire. It takes place in a single location, a living room, but on a massive timeframe - reaching deep into the past (500,957,406,073 BC) and projecting into the future (22314 AD).

Through layers of scenography the ensemble will create a universe where characters from different times will coexist and interact in the same space, through the centuries. DÉJÀ is an accumulation of cocktail parties, arguing couples, farewells, arrivals, a fire, a flooding, a tree losing its leaves - including events from before the house was built, and long after it disappeared. With expressive movement, magical illusion and striking imagery, the Krumple seeks to create a living time-capsule of the current moment, everything that has led up to it, and where humanity might be going. It questions our significance, or rather - our insignificance, faced with the passing of time.

The show is a co-production with Nordland Visual Theatre in Norway, and is supported by Arts Council Norway, Dramatikkens Hus, Nordland Fylkeskommune, Fond for Lyd og Bilde, Danish Arts Foundation, SPENN and SPEDIDAM. The show will premiere at Stamsund International Theatre Festival in June 2019, then be shown at Bergen Fringe and Teaterfestivalen i Fjaler, September 2019. 

With and by the Krumple: Léna Rondé, David Tholander, Oda Kirkebø Nyfløtt, Vincent Vernerie and Jo Even Bjørke. Outside eye: Gwendolyn Warnock. Dramaturg: Kristina Kjeldsberg. Set design: Caroline Ginet. Set construction: Tim Lucassen and Jan Erik Skarby. Set assistants: Fabien Saleil and Pia Rondé. Sound design: Christian Skjødt. Sound assistant: Viljar Losnegård and Paulucci Bakke. Lighting design: Claire Gondrexon. Costumes: Sylvie Berthou and Vilde Jensen Hjetland. Stage managers: Holly Taylor and Agathe Patonnier. Props assistant: Pauline Schill.

 Y Ō K A I / remedy for despair

In a desolate space stands a group of curious looking people. With miniature trees and paper seagulls in their pockets they begin to recreate the world as they see it. A premeditated car accident, a ravenous cod and a dreadful christmas eve are part of the chaos created by the yōkai. Combining dance, magic, poetry and sheer stupidity, the Krumple tells a contemporary tale of our attempts to find hope in moments of despair.

YŌKAI continues the company’s research within a physical and visual style, creating a terrain that is grotesque and poetic, tragic and humorous. A tone of ironic distance permeates the show, fueled by the company’s rich aesthetic and movement.

In 2014 members of the Krumple began working with additional performers, all colleagues and graduates of l'École Internationale de Théâtre Jacques Lecoq. YŌKAI was developed through residecies at Théâtre de la Noue in Paris and at Espace du Moulin de l'Étang in Billom. It was then showed at the Recklinghausen and Edinburgh Fringe Festivals, and has toured in Norway, Denmark, France and the US. In 2018 it will be shown at Festival d'Avignon, France.

Winner of the 1st prize at Les Plateaux du Groupe Geste(s) 2016, at Théâtre de Châtillon, Paris.

With and by The Krumple: Léna Rondé, David Tholander, Louisa Hollway, Oda Kirkebø Nyfløtt, Jo Even Bjørke, Vincent Vernerie and Vanessa Mecke.

Lighting design: Houcine Pradinaud

G O T O S L E E P , G O D D A M N I T !

A play about a church, alarm systems, dinosaurs and a lack of greater meaning.

Using full masks, bold physicality and not a single spoken word, The Krumple tells the story of a small provincial church, which finds itself devoid of church-goers. The disillusioned priest battles with himself, God and his pillows as he falls deeper and deeper into an existential crisis. Three nuns unwittingly unleash the power of the internet, and with it their own ambitions and desires. To make matters worse, dinosaurs have appeared on Noah’s Ark and someone is plotting to burn down the church. Ranging from grotesquely comic to poignant, “Go to Sleep, Goddamnit!” explores the question: “What does one do when one's purpose has become obsolete?”

The project premiered at the Camden People's Theatre in August 2013, after a successful crowdfunding campaign through indiegogo.com. It was performed during The Camden Fringe Festival after a month of research and development in Norway. It was showed at Det Andre Teatret (Oslo), Frydenlund Teater (Gausdal), Tou Scene (Stavanger) and at the Showbox festival (Oslo). It toured Rogaland through Den Kulturelle Skolesekken, and had its US premiere at The Tank i New York City, as a part of their flagship series Flint and Tinder. It was performed at Teaterfestivalen i Fjaler in 2016, and at VÅRSCENEFEST in Tromsø in 2018.

With and by The Krumple: Oda K. Nyfløtt, Jon Levin, Vincent Vernerie and Jo Even Bjørke. Lighting design: Linn Sæther.